Howard Zinn: A People's History Of The United States

If you're going to listen to an audio book, do you really want Lisa Scottoline to show you a good crime, or for Patrick Stewart to read A Christmas Carol Diversion is all well and good, but if you want to fill your head with something more substantial, AK Press and Alternative Tentacles are at least providing some challenging options. The audio version of Howard Zinn's A People's History Of The United States may not knock you on your ass, as Matt Damon suggested in Good Will Hunting, but it should at least provide food for thought. It's not so much a historical treatise on American injustices as an examination of the way history turns a blind eye toward workers and minorities. Zinn possesses an easy, gripping speaking style, as well as the ability to bring to life numerous examples of class conflicts and historical hypocrisies. A People's History is a compelling two-disc Zinn primer that should help countless Damon fans find out what he's all about. Can't hurt, can it In Propaganda And Control Of The Public Mind, respected linguist Noam Chomsky deconstructs the manner in which public opinion has been formed to perpetuate the agenda of big business and the ruling class. Chomsky rails against public-relations organizations, the destructive nature inherent to capitalism, and the travails of labor using characteristically clear, cohesive arguments. His speaking style, on the other hand, is a sonic glass of warm milk, so if you aren't already engaged in Chomsky's political philosophy, it's unlikely that you'll be excited enough to make it through Propaganda without a nap. The question-and-answer section of disc two is considerably more interesting. Here, Chomsky actually cracks a few jokes, and his off-the-cuff delivery is more engaging and impassioned than his prepared material. Both of these projects are preaching to the lefty choir, of course, but if you're a member of said choir, both People's History and Propaganda provide an abundance of material to think over. If nothing else, they should help remind you why you joined the choir in the first place.